WORCESTER, Mass. – The #22/19 Thomas Jefferson University women's basketball team (27-4) outscored sixth-seeded Daemen (20-5), 35-18, in the second half to pull away to a 74-47 victory over the Wildcats in the opening round of the NCAA East Regional on Friday afternoon.
 
The third-seeded Rams advance to the region semifinals where they will take on the number two seed, Southern New Hampshire, on Saturday, March 11^th at 5 p.m. The Penmen defeated seventh-seeded St. Thomas Aquinas, 65-44, in the quarterfinals.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams struggled early on, shooting a combined 4-of-22 (18.2%) over the first five minutes. After the first quarter media timeout, Jefferson got into a rhythm and shot 6-of-9 for the rest of the period, taking a 21-11 lead into the second. The Rams took over with a 19-5 run during the frame.
 
Jefferson continued its hot streak to start the second, scoring 10 of the quarter's first 12 points to increase the margin to 18 (31-13) with 5:28 on the clock. Trailing 34-16, the Wildcats got back in the game with a 13-5 stretch to close the half. Daemen went 4-for-6 from the field during the rally, including 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. The Rams went cold, making just two of their seven shots, as the Wildcats cut the deficit to 10 (39-29) at halftime.
 
Daemen netted the first two buckets of the third quarter to get within six (39-33). Haley Meinel hit a jumper then the Wildcats came back with a layup to get the difference to six again (41-35) at the 7:15 mark. It was the last Daemen basket for the rest of the period as the Rams' stifling defense forced the Wildcats to go 0-for-9 over the remaining seven minutes. Jefferson was able to put together a 12-0 run, despite shooting just 4-for-21 in the quarter, and took a 53-35 advantage into the fourth.
 
Daemen broke its scoring drought with a layup to begin the final stanza. However, the Rams answered with a 10-4 run to up the cushion to 22 (63-41) with 5:06 to go. After a Wildcats' three, Jefferson tallied 11 of the last 14 to reach the final score. The Rams shot 7-of-10 in the period while limiting Daemen to just 5-of-16.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Haley Meinel: 22 points, 4 steals, 3 rebounds, 3 assists
Sam Yencha: 12 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block
Emma Kuczynski: 12 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist
Cassie Murphy: 10 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, 1 steal
Emily Keehfuss: 9 points on 3-of-5 shooting (3-4 3PT), 1 rebound
Morgan Robinson: 7 points on 3-of-6 shooting, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals, 1 block
 
JEFFERSON AS A TEAM
FG: 27-of-67 (40.3%)
3PT: 4-of-9 (44.4%)
FT: 16-of-23 (69.6%)
 
NOTES
- Jefferson has won a NCAA Tournament game in back-to-back seasons for the first time in program history.
- Morgan Robinson moved into third place on the Rams' all-time assists list with 530.
- Jefferson recorded its 27^th victory of the year, tied for second-best in school history.